Vol. 1, No. 49. Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Please note: The Diocese of Tucson offices will be closed Monday and Tuesday of next week in observance of Christmas. The offices will be closed again on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, 2019 for the New Year's Day observance. Please note that several departments at the Pastoral Center will have limited staff during this time.

The Update will take a brief break and will reappear Wednesday, Jan. 16, following the Bishop's Retreat in Mundelein, Ill.

Christmas Message

May you have a merry,  joyful, and blessed Christmas Season

The great event of Christmas draws near, and the day holds meaning on many levels for all who celebrate it.  There is of course the very heart of Christmas—God taking on human flesh, stepping into His own creation, and taking on our sins to redeem and save us. 

That first, historical Christmas marked a critical turn in the journey of salvation history.  But there are other dimensions to the day and season which have become attached to the feast: time with family and friends, celebrations, rich foods, gift-giving, and a holiday from our typical endeavors and employment.  While we Christians sometimes speak negatively of these secondary matters, I believe that if the heart of Christmas is kept central, then there is actually some benefit and even grace in these Christmas customs. 

As we journey through the Hebrew Scriptures, oftentimes referred to as the Old Testament, we see a continuous movement toward a great event in which a Messiah will come to redeem His people.  The movement gathers strength and momentum as it moves from the oldest books of the Bible to the later works, such as the Prophet Isaiah.  We celebrate at Christmas as the fulfillment of what the great figures of the Old Testament longed to see.  But Christmas looks not only to the past.  It sheds the joy of its light on us today as well.  Indeed, the Messiah continues to come to us today in the love we share, the justice we live, and the mercy we practice. 

As we draw near to December 25th let us pause to treasure the heart of this celebration, even as we enter appropriately into the celebrations of family, friendship, and feasting.  And as we head to a new year, let us be committed to accompanying this Messiah who has come to us in quiet humility, bearing a message of peace, mercy, and unity.  In this way we no doubt will receive the best of gifts, and enter into the celebration that knows no end.

May you have a merry, joyful, and blessed Christmas Season.

Bishop Edward J. Weisenburger

Dinner with seminarians and parents

Friday evening I will join our seminarians and their parents for dinner. This is a great opportunity to get to know the families of our seminarians and become a bit more acquainted with our future priests. The dinner will be hosted at Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Tucson.

Mass at the Pima County Jail

I will join Deacon Mike Gutierrez, of the Kolbe Society Prison Ministry of  Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona, Inc., that provides ministry to the incarcerated, for this Christmas Eve Mass this year.  I will be celebrating with those at the Pima County Jail who want to participate.

Christmas Masses

I will celebrate Christmas Eve Mass for children at St. Augustine Cathedral Parish at 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve.  Christmas Day, I will join the sisters at Santa Rita Abbey for Mass.

I will assist with covering Masses at Immaculate Conception Parish in Yuma on Dec. 29 and Dec. 30, before heading out to Mundelein, Ill. and the seminary there for the Bishop's Retreat from Jan. 2 to Jan. 8.

Walk for Vocations Awareness

Register at https://diocesetucson.org/vocations/ and scroll down to the image shown here.

We need priests in our parishes and you need a priest in your life! By participating in the 4th Annual 5K Walk for Vocations you help raise awareness as well as show support for discerners, seminarians, priests, and religious brothers and sisters in the Diocese of Tucson.

This family friendly event is open to all ages and fitness levels.

After the color walk/run there will be music, food, games, face painting, Mass, and prayer.

Youth groups and high school teams are encouraged to join at a discounted group rate.

Please note: Remember to have your ticket handy on the day of the event by either printing it beforehand or by downloading it to your mobile device.

Upcoming 

Mass and Dinner with Bishop Weisenburger

Support seminarian education and retired priests

Jan. 20, 2019

Registration required

Information: Call 520-820-4206

Registration forms online at:

http://kofcknights.org/Assembly.asp?A=2392

Each year, the Donald H. Hughes Assembly of the  Knights of Columbus continues support of seminarian education and retired priests. Bishop Weisenburger and the Msgr. Donald H. Hughes Assembly 2392 would like to invite you to attend the 15th annual "Mass & Dinner with the Bishop" Jan. 20, 2019. NEW VENUE: Mass will be held at St Thomas the Apostle at 3:30 p.m. No-host social hour and dinner will be at the Skyline Country Club beginning at 5:00 PM. The cost will remain at $150.00 per person.  This year's honorees are Bishop-Emeritus Gerald F. Kicanas and Father Robert Carney.

The Knights of Columbus Assembly 2392 has raised more than $670,000 over the past 14 years supporting the Retired Priest Fund and Tucson Diocese seminarian education.